PE prices turn higher again after steep summer decline

North American polyethylene resin markets have taken another turn after one of the most volatile stretches in recent memory.

Prices soared during the spring as the Iran war disrupted global markets, only to fall sharply during the summer as inventories grew, export demand weakened and buyers regained negotiating leverage.

Now prices are moving higher again.

North American PE resin prices increased an average of 5 cents per pound in September, with stronger domestic and export demand helping suppliers regain some of the pricing power they lost during the summer. High global oil prices also supported the increase.

The September move leaves regional PE prices up a net 25 cents per pound since the beginning of 2026.

That figure masks some unusually large swings during the year.

PE prices had increased 15 cents per pound during the first quarter before surging another 30 cents in April following the start of the Iran war. The 45-cent run-up was followed by a rapid reversal, with prices falling 15 cents in June and another 10 cents in July.

Buyers successfully resisted supplier efforts to push through increases averaging 5-7 cents in August, leaving prices flat.

By September, however, conditions were beginning to shift in producers’ favor.

Plastics News reported last month that export volumes were strengthening as high global oil prices improved the competitive position of North American PE producers, which benefit from relatively inexpensive natural gas-based feedstocks.

The 5-cent September increase means producers captured only part of the increases being sought, but it nevertheless reversed the direction of a market that had fallen 25 cents per pound in June and July before going flat in August.

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